On June 9 our charity ambassador, Heather Fell, is taking on the Comrades Marathon in South Africa, raising money for Bath Rugby Foundation in the process.

Heather will have 12 hours to run the 87km from Durban and Pietermaritzburg.

Heather has been an ambassador for Bath Rugby Foundation since 2013 when she took part in the charity’s Land’s End to John O’Groats ride. Since then she’s taken part in many events and challenges, most recently the 2019 Bath Half Marathon.

About the Comrades Marathon

The Comrades Marathon is an ultramarathon which is run annually in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa between the cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg. It is the world's largest and oldest ultramarathon race. The first Comrades Marathon took place in 1921.

The direction of the race alternates each year between the "up" run (87 km) starting from Durban and the "down" run (now 90.184 km) starting from Pietermaritzburg. This year Heather and the rest of the 25,000 runners will take on the 87km (54 miles) “up” run.

Part of the qualification process is that runners must have completed an officially recognised marathon (42.2 km) in under 4 hours and 50 minutes.

About Heather Fell

Heather Fell found sporting success when she won the title of Junior World Champion for modern pentathlon in 2003 before going on to win a silver medal at the 2008 Olympic Games.

A few years later, Heather ventured into the world of triathlon, jumping straight in with a half distance. She quickly went on to secure second place in her age group at Ironman South Africa in 2017, where she qualified for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.

Heather has been an ambassador for Bath Rugby Foundation since 2013.

Follow Heather on Instagram

About Bath Rugby Foundation

Bath Rugby Foundation is Bath Rugby’s charity and our purpose is to empower vulnerable children and young people in Bath and the surrounding area to succeed.

Bath is a city famed for its Roman baths, impressive Georgian architecture, Jane Austen - and of course its rugby club. However, behind the Georgian façade lies a different story. 20% of children in Bath live in poverty. Twerton West is in the top 10% most deprived areas in the UK & Whiteway is in the bottom 1% in the country in its provision of education and training for children & young people.

We don’t believe it is right that such inequality exists in our city.

Bath Rugby Foundation exists to bridge the gap between the poorest and most affluent areas, and build a positive, supportive community in Bath and the surrounding area.

Our ambition is to change the lives of vulnerable children and young people who have not been given that equal chance of success. Our programmes focus on key areas of need in our community - Education, Inclusion and Employability.

Learn more about Bath Rugby Foundation here or sign up for our newsletter at the foot of this page.

Donate to Heather's fundraising appeal here